BioShock Mobile Version Has Been Permanently Removed From App Store

The mobile port of BioShock was rendered unplayable by iOS 8.4, released in late June. 2K Games promised to release a patch to make the game compatible with the updated operating system but that never happened. They quietly pulled the game from the App Store. Many fans hoped they would soon add the game back with the needed fixes.

Today, though, customer support confirmed to a fan that the mobile BioShock won't be returning to the App Store:

I understand you're having issues with Bioshock for mobile gaming. Unfortunately, you are correct we don't currently have this game for mobile gaming anymore, which I know can be frustrating. The removal of the game was a developer decision. This happens occasionally, but thankfully not often.

I'm terrible sorry for this, if you purchased Bioshock for IOS and you would like a refund, Apple will be of great assistance. Since the transaction wasn't completed through us, we can not perform a full refund back to you. However you will be able to complete a refund with Apple. They will be able to do this for you.

BioShock iOS was a port of the 2007 shooter that started the series. The developers at 2K China had to make some compromises to get the game on mobile devices. The graphics were downgraded and, unless the player had a Bluetooth controller, they had to use virtual buttons on the touchscreen to control their character. The reviews seemed to agree it was the worst version of the game on the market.

Nonetheless, it was still BioShock in spite of these problems. The whole game was there. It wasn't some freak mutation, like that Dungeon Keeper game that regularly hits you up for cash. I'm surprised 2K wouldn't consider the port worthy of continued development, especially when the launch was only a year ago.

There's a glimmer of hope for mobile gamers, though. Touch Arcade notes that customer support isn't always aware of updates in development. They point to the recent kerfuffle over The World Ends With You's mobile port as an example of this. World Ends With You was broken by an iOS update and eventually fixed, even though the company initially said that the game was being shut down. It's possible there's a similar miscommunication going on at 2K.